This one is a staple in my home. I don’t know where I found the basic recipe, so apologies I can’t give credit where it’s due. Joelyoson loves this stuff spicy. I like it milder and would cut the spice a bit, but you can decide for yourself and adjust the spices accordingly. This was a gateway food for him and he was surprised to learn eating vegetarian food isn’t boring.

A quick word on spices. Herbs and spices open the world of food and flavor more than you might imagine. The usual grocery store variety is not surprisingly diluted with filler. I say it isn’t surprising, yet it’s a tidbit I learned recently, and I was not happy about it! A friend turned me onto Penzey’s spices and I’ve never looked back for a minute. The difference in scent and flavor in my food was immediately evident. The huge improvement in flavor far outweighs the small increase in expense. Much better quality, not much higher cost. We have a local shop, but they are also online and offer regular discounts if you are on their mailing list. Give these guys a try.

The recipe calls for a can of garbanzo beans (chickpeas). You know I’m going to tell you to buy the highest quality you can afford, right? If you have the time, consider using re-hydrated dried beans. I try to cook a package of dried beans in the slow cooker (following directions on the package) and freeze them in 2 cup portions. It really isn’t that time consuming, and hummus made from reconstituted beans has more flavor, better texture and no added sugar, salt, preservatives, etc. One 15 ounce can of anything is roughly 2 cups.

This recipe calls for a 4 ounce jar of roasted red peppers. I never found a jar that small, so I buy the 12 ounce jars and use out of it what I need. I weigh out on my kitchen scale 4 ounces of peppers. I know this is not right. I know the 4 ounce jar has some weight in brine or oil, but I love my result. We have also used spicy peppers instead of roasted bell peppers to increase the heat. The remainder of the jar goes – as is – into the freezer until I’m ready for the next batch of hummus.

Did you know that bottle of lemon juice in your fridge has added preservatives? I wasn’t happy about that either. I keep a few lemons in the fridge all the time. I found a little juicer that also serves as a storage container, so I juice them as I need them.

The ingredients:

• 1 15 oz can of garbanzo beans, drained
• 1 4 oz jar roasted red peppers, drained
• 3T lemon juice
• 1 1/2 T tahini
• 1 clove garlic, sliced
• 1/2 t ground cumin
• 1/2 t ginger
• 1/2 t cayenne pepper
• 1/4 t salt

Here’s the best part of this recipe:
Put all the ingredients into a food processor or food chopper or blender and pulse until blended to the consistency you like. You’ll need to scrape the sides once or twice to incorporate the ingredients. That’s it! Refrigerate. It doesn’t last the week at my house.

This comes together in 15 minutes plus chilling time. We eat it at room temperature straight out of the chopper or chilled. It’s a quick appetizer served with baby carrots, crackers, crusty bread (or toast) and even tortilla chips. I put it on a wrap with feta cheese and a salad blend for lunch.

The only advice I have is that in my little food chopper, it seems to work better if I put the peppers in first and the garbanzos last. Also, if I used re-hydrated beans from my freezer, I need to drain the beans longer or the result is runny. If I use beans drained and rinsed from a can, the result is a little drier and you might want to add a little drizzle of oil or veggie broth. Not too much! I like the texture of hummus to be coarse with more texture. Joelyoson prefers it smoother. Food is personal – experiment and make it yours!